Would you ever consider walking into the throne room of God and saying, “Yo, G! Wazzup? Hey, here’s my list of things. You got that, right? Cool. Later!”
Yet, in a sense, that’s what we do. Just go right into the things we want from Him instead of paving our way with humility, praise, and gratitude.
The psalmist tells us to enter His gates with thanksgiving. Walk into the outer edges of His space by giving thanks, showing gratitude, expressing our appreciation to Him for all He has provided to us.
As we move closer to His throne, we’re to offer praise. We’re to bless His name, recognize that He is God and we are not. Offer praise for His presence, power, and knowledge of all.
Why? Why would we do this just to lodge a request with the Almighty?
Because He is WORTHY of all our praise. If we praised Him every moment of every day for all of eternity, we would barely scratch the surface of His amazing wonder.
Because He is GOOD. Always good, always kind, always giving. In all ways. Even when we don’t think what He is doing is good, we can trust that He is good.
Because His love is EVERLASTING. It continues. It goes on and on to infinity. His love never ends. Even when we act unlovingly toward Him, He loves us. Even when we were anti-God, He loved us enough to die for us.
Because His faithfulness and truth ENDURE forever, throughout every generation. It continues from our generation to the next and the next and to all the following generations. It goes on and on and on, never ending.
We look for these traits in humans only to be disappointed. God doesn’t disappoint. He may answer no when we want a yes, but when we look at the whole of the situation, we can see that “No” was for our good and His glory, and was a much better answer than the yes ever could have been.
While we have full access to God, not having to go through the priest at the Temple, we should recognize His majesty and revere Him completely, not busting up into His throne room like He owes us. We should take our time. We should enter the outer space bearing our thanks, then offering our praise as we move to His inner sanctum. Once in His presence, understanding who we are and who He is, we can make our requests known to Him.
Give it a try today! Share with me 3 things you’re thankful for and 3 things you’re praising Him for today. If you’d like, you can also share something you’re asking Him for.
Consider writing these down every day to intentionally get into the habit.
Coffee, Bible, Journal.
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Faye Bryant is an author, coach, and speaker who helps individuals escape the lies of the enemy, live into God’s truth, and build a better life by first feeling, dealing, and healing their way through a stuck future or an abused past, toward a deeper path of purpose, and into the unhackable life of their chosen legacy. Hers is a story of resurrection: from death to life!
